Ctrip partners with Spain’s biggest hotel group Melia

Ctrip announced that it has formed a strategic partnership Melia Hotels, the largest hotel group in Spain, on big data, marketing, services, products and others.

“This signals Ctrip’s further development in European market. It will provide more diverse hotel options for Chinese travelers when they visit Europe,” said Rong Zhang, Vice President of Ctrip Group and General Manager of Ctrip Hotel Business.

Melia has nearly 400 hotels across the globe in more than 40 countries and regions.

“With Ctrip’s help, we were able to open our first Chinese location Meilia Jinan and Gran Melia Xian in China,” said Jose Maria Dalmau, VP of International Business Development, Melia Group.

The new partnership will focus on creative marketing, service upgrade, and direct system connection, aside from existing service guarantee and sales support, which will help Ctrip to serve both domestic and overseas customers better, according to Rong Zhang.

Jose indicated that it will also launch a new program called “Friends” to offer personalized service to Chinese travelers.

Jie Sun, CEO of Ctrip, strongly promoted Chinese tourism during her visit with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to China-EU Business Summit. She said Ctrip was willing to build a “bridge” between China and Europe and contribute to the travel industry development between the two countries.

To achieve the mission, Ctrip’s hotel team has made increasing efforts in European markets. In future, Ctrip hopes to offer fast and convenient services to Chinese travelers by establishing local call centers.